Demonstration of Efficient Radon Removal by Silver-Zeolite in a Dark Matter Detector

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that silver-zeolite Ag-ETS-10 is vastly more effective than activated charcoal in removing radon, significantly reducing background noise in dark matter and neutrino experiments.

Contribution

The study provides the first direct comparison showing silver-zeolite outperforms activated charcoal by three orders of magnitude in radon capture at room temperature.

Findings

Silver-zeolite outperforms activated charcoal in radon removal by 1000 times.

Radon reduction with silver-zeolite significantly decreases background in rare event searches.

Potential for improved radon mitigation systems in underground physics laboratories.

Abstract

We present the performance of an efficient radon trap using silver-zeolite Ag-ETS-10, measured with a spherical proportional counter filled with an argon/methane mixture. Our study compares the radon reduction capabilities of silver-zeolite and the widely used activated charcoal, both at room temperature. We demonstrate that silver-zeolite significantly outperforms activated charcoal by three orders of magnitude in radon capture. Given that radon is a major background contaminant in rare event searches, our findings highlight silver-zeolite as a highly promising adsorbent, offering compelling operational advantages for both current and future dark matter and neutrino physics experiments. Furthermore, this not only offers great promise for developing future radon reduction systems in underground laboratories, but also paves the way for innovative, multidisciplinary advancements with far-reaching implications in science, engineering and environmental health.